The things you allow to occupy space in your life will dictate how you experience it. Whether they’re people, places, ideas or material things; their presence in your life can and will control how you view the world. This is why you have to be very selective about what you allow and accept into your life. If you are always around optimistic people, then you will live your life optimistically. If you only listen to news and podcasts about how the world is going to spontaneously combust, then you will always be afraid of change and the future. If you only follow super skinny Instagram models who seem to have the perfect life, you’ll think that you’re fat and less than.

We have to learn how to consume just the right mix of media and ideas so that we have a realistic outlook on life, and can talk about the things that we are passionate about. So, before we leave January behind, I challenge you to take inventory of what you need to reuse, recycle and trash.

Reuse

These are the good things that challenge you to think outside of yourself and the things that bring you the most joy. Keep them close and try to interact with them as often as possible. Whether they are people that you love having thought provoking conversations with, inspirational posters and quotes that help you get through the day or a daily workout routine that gives you that extra pep in your step; make these apart of your habits.

Recycle

These may be habits that you enjoy, but have been consuming too much of your time. Do you spend most of your day on social media channels, or are you obsessed with reading tabloids? While these things are great in moderation, lets put these in the recycling bin and you can check them out at a later date. While you may not be completely ridding yourself of something that you enjoy, you can keep a nice balance in your life by choosing how long and how often you interact with them.

trash

These are people, places and ideas that only bring you down. As hard as it may be to get rid of them, I promise you’ll see the light. There are some people that we keep in our lives out of familiarity, but they are not pouring into you. There are also some places that everytime you go to, the energy seems off. STOP GOING! Run away from the idea that just because you’ve always done something, you need to keep doing it. It’s time to throw away the bad habits and energies. Always remember that you deserve better.

So what’s on your reuse, recycle and trash lists? Make sure to use these guidelines as you continue your start into 2018.